Monday, March 23, 2015

Bill Murray v. Rick Ross, Sierra Leone implodes and Alaskan ganja fun


- Fish in a barrel, Anchorage Police Department, fish in a freaking barrel. Raiding Alaskan marijuana activist Charlo Greene's Alaska Cannabis Club after receiving reports of illegal marijuana sales is a bit like pulling over Snoop Dogg’s tour bus because you may have heard rumors of illegal substances being smoked inside. For those who think they recognize Greene’s name but aren’t quite sure who she is because she’s really not that relevant, she’s a former television reporter who gained notoriety when she quit her job on live TV in September with an expletive and announced that she would become an advocate to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Alaska. Greene, whose legal name is Charlene Egbe, now has a place where she invites stoners, er, medical marijuana users to come and enjoy their shared love of the hippie lettuce. "We don't sell any recreational marijuana. We don't sell any medical marijuana. This is a place for cardholders to come and share their own cannabis," she said. Police disagreed and served search warrants at the club, impounding two vehicles and seizing an undisclosed amount of chron. That weed could belong to visitors, or it could belong to one of the medical marijuana cardholders who call the property home. "I saw them uproot a couple of marijuana plants. They took some bongs and pipes and phones and computers, and that's pretty much it," Greene said. Still, the raid did not dampen the drug-clouded spirits of Greene and her pothead friends. "By opening back up bright and early, less than 24 hours after the local police department's failed scare tactic, we, at the Alaska Cannabis Club, have made it clear that the will of the people is stronger than any force they have — and we aren't going anywhere," Green said. The state’s legislature is still determining guidelines for the regulation of the marijuana trade after voters last year approved a ballot measure legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. For now, selling the hippie lettuce remains illegal………

- Rick Ross has gone toe to toe with a lot of powerful players in the entertainment industry, but this time the top producer may have stepped on the wrong set of celebrity toes. Ross has allegedly bailed on the offer of a collaboration with Bill Murray after the two were seen together in an Instagram post. Murray claimed that after recording a song in his studio, Ross later failed to show up for a TV special the duo were supposed to work on together. Ross may have simply been busy with all of his duties promoting and supporting the two albums he released last year, “Mastermind” and “Hood Billionaire,” but Murray was clearly banking on him to play a role in the new Christmas show he's producing for Netflix. Not only did Murray decide to call Ross out, but he used his appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to do so. "We were doing a Christmas show, and my friend is friends with him, so thought he’d be great to sing this one song,” Murray said. “So he came and recorded the song... and that was the last we saw of him. If anyone out there sees like a 300-pound guy, who looks like he’s supposed to be in New York two weeks ago, let me know." To make it clear that he wanted Ross to fulfill his promise, Murray said that Ross “better be dead, because otherwise he’s in trouble.” Duly noted, Billy. Ross may not have shown up, but George Clooney and Miley Cyrus are to play themselves in the project, with Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph also set to appear as Murray reunites with “Lost In Translation” director Sofia Coppola. The project may not have a title or a Rick Ross, but its plot is known. It will follow Murray, who famously chooses not to have an agent or manager, as a shifty Hollywood agent tries to sign him. How a Christmas theme will be woven into all of this is unclear, but knowing Murray, it’s going to be bizarre……….


- Has Sierra Leone been watching too much C-SPAN and Fox News of late? The tiny African nation is showing some definite Republican Party tendencies of late, at least its opposition party, which is considering impeachment proceedings against the president and said it will refuse all cooperation with the government since the vice president was fired. The Sierra Leone People's Party is looking to put the hurt in certain people and said following r an emergency meeting that it will also ask the Supreme Court to review Vice President Samuel Sam-Sumana's removal from office. The party’s rage is directed primarily at President Ernest Bai Koroma, who fired Sam-Sumana last week, citing his expulsion from their political party. The move offended many and a number of groups have denounced the move as unconstitutional. Sam-Sumana is challenging it in court and in the midst of the mayhem, tensions have spiked in Sierra Leone as the country struggles to recover from a civil war while also battling an Ebola epidemic. Having a government that is on the verge of imploding and may or may not be ripe for a coup typically doesn’t help bring stability, but at least the impending fireworks will be fun to enjoy from afar. Toss in widespread allegations that police are using emergency measures meant to help contain Ebola to stifle dissent against the government and this is one hot mess of governmental incompetence and corruption. Whoever can successfully lead the country out of this giant societal clusterf*ck is going to have to be a blend of Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Sun Tzu and Margaret Thatcher………


- Former Montreal Canadiens coach Mario Tremblay may still have some issues with a current member of the team. Tremblay, who was fired by the Canadiens in 1997 and had multiple altercations with Canadiens players both during and after his tenure, really doesn’t have much cause to have a beef with current defenseman P.K. Subban, but judging by the story a Quebec police officer pun in court last week during Tremblay’s court proceedings for speeding and suspicion of driving while intoxicated, the former coach may have some rage and bitterness issues. Constable Maxime Perron testified that after he pulled Tremblay over for traveling 18 mph over the posted speed limit of 31 mph and immediately smelled alcohol on Tremblay's breath. When the officer tried to arriest the former coach and NHL player, Tremblay refused to take a breathalyzer test and reportedly said the officer was like Subban, making poor decisions and being petty. Those words stem from a period when Subban was holding out of training camp with the Canadiens before eventually signing a new contract. Shortly thereafter, this whole DUI mess took place and Perron found himself the target of some displaced anger by Tremblay, now a well-known broadcast analyst with RDS in Quebec. Insulting your arresting officer is always a bold choice, albeit one bereft of wisdom. In Tremblay's defense, his lawyers are challenging the version of events provided by the police officer, hopefully without following their client’s (alleged) example and impugning the judge or prosecutor’s competence and professionalism by likening them to the bad temper of Carey Price or the petulance of Max Pacioretty…….

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